TITLETOWN

Friday, June 10, 2011

Remember the 2-10 start and all of Red Sox Nation was in disarray? The Red Sox now sit in first place in the AL East with a 36-26 record. They have swept the Yankees two times this year at Yankee Stadium and have taken an overall eight out of nine. The offense is as advertised, putting football type numbers up on the scoreboard and the pitching has been there, but needs to improve. Adrian Gonzalez is in contention for a triple crown with his ridiculous numbers of 12 home runs, .336 average and 55 RBIs through 62 games. Carl Crawford dismal April is in the past and he is hovering around the .250 mark. Dustin Pedroia dodged a bullet with only a bruised knee cap and will not require surgery. Jacoby Ellsbury is having a fantastic bounce back year while David Ortiz is on absolute fire with 15 homers and batting around .325. The pitching must get better and healthier, but the Red Sox are who we thought they were, a first place team and a powerhouse. Look for this team to keep rolling as they are 18-6 in their last 24 games.

A series does not start until both teams have home ice. The Boston Bruins proved that in the past week by evening the series with the Vancouver Canucks. The Bruins could have easily swept the series, but to know they are even with the Canucks now after two devastating losses is a sigh of relief.

After Nathan Horton received a late hit from Aaron Rome, the Bruins have outscored the Canucks 12-1. Coincidence? I think so. The Bruins are now inside Roberto Luongo's head who has received the nod as game five starter. The physical play of Zdeno Chara, Dennis Seidenberg, Johnny Boychuk and the emergence of tough guy Shawn Thornton have really worn down the Canucks. The Sedin sisters have been a non-factor and Ryan Kesler has not been the same since the big hit by Boychuk in game two. It is a best of three series and the Bs have all the momentum heading back to Vancouver. Mark Recchi has been finding the back of the net, Brad Marchand is getting under the Canucks skin, David Krejci is making a case for the MVP of the Stanley Cup, and oh, Timmy Thomas has been spectacular.

Thursday, June 2, 2011

I know the Bruins are in the Stanley Cup for the first time in 21 years and the Red Sox are finally playing the way they should be, but I asked myself the other day, what is in store for the Celtics next season? After coming off a brutal series loss to the Miami Heat, the Celtics have a lot of question marks heading into next season. Shaq has retired, Jermaine is questioning surgery, Krstic is a free agent, Baby is a free agent, and the Big three are only getting older. Sure, Rajon Rondo is here to stay (hopefully) and the team can build around him when the Big Three have retired, but where do they go? Do they try and go after Dwight Howard? Doc Rivers signed a five year deal, well beyond the availability of the Big Three so in my opinion, something must be in store. Will they ship Rondo and Jeff Green to New Orleans for Chris Paul? With Chris Paul, does that bring Dwight Howard is 2012? There is a lot to think about come November. The Celtics are losing a lot of key parts, but the core will still be there and I still think they can make a push for another championship.

Word has it that Daisuke Matsuzaka will undergo Tommy John surgery ending his season. Matsuzaka was less than stellar this year owning a 3-3 record with a 5.30 E.R.A. He has been nothing but frustrating since he got here besides his 18-3 campaign. Too many walks, too many hits, not enough strikeouts, and throwing off-speed pitches behind in the count. These were the ingredients for diaster for the young righty. With Dice-K out for a very long time, how will Terry Francona go about handling the situation?
Tim Wakefield and Alfredo Aceves have been doing an okay job at filling the roles of John Lackey and Dice-K, but will they be able to do this on a regular basis? Aceves was roughed up in his last outing versus the White Sox and Tim Wakefield was strong at the start of the game yesterday, but fell apart toward the later innings. Will Kevin Millwood really get a chance? He got shelled yesterday in Pawtucket so I think that is out of the question. When Felix Dubront is healthy, will he get a shot? Only time will tell because the back end of the rotation (as we all knew) is suspect. In order for this team to compete, the pitching needs to be great from top to bottom.
I personally think Aceves is more valuable in the bullpen, but he wants to be a starter. Tim Wakefield is a different look after seeing 95 MPH from Beckett and Lester. It is a tough decision for Tito, but you can never have enough pitching. Why not go out and make a big splash at the deadline for a starter?

The Bruins did just about everything they could last night to keep the Canucks off the scoreboard until the final 18.5 seconds. Was Torres offsides? Who knows. Was Boychuk out of position? You really can't blame anyone at that point in the game. The Boston Bruins played one hell of a game on Wednesday night. Tim Thomas was spectacular but Roberto Luongo was just better.
The Bruins still had the problem of scoring on their power play, but they resilient Bs shut down Vancouver on the power play all night long. Who would have thought that after the Tampa Bay Lightning scored goal after goal on the power play? There has to be much positivity taken out of this game because I do not think the Canucks can play any better than they did. Timmy Thomas just shut down the powerhouse offense.
Another big component of this game is to see if Alex Burrows will be suspended for a game for biting Patrice Bergeron. Burrows is a major part of the Canucks offense as he plays along side the Sedin brothers. This would be a huge blow for the Canucks and should be looked at carefully by the league. It was a classless move that was uncalled for.
The Bruins will head into Saturday's game feeling good about themselves. They have come back from being down in series on the road all throughout the playoffs. One thing has to continue to get better and that is the power play. It was significantly better on Wednesday night because the Bs were throwing shot after shot on net getting great opportunities, Saturday night if those chances go in, the Bruins will not lose with the way the defense and Timmy Thomas are playing.

Saturday, May 28, 2011

For the first time in 21 years the Boston Bruins punched a ticket to the Stanley Cup finals with a late goal from Nathan Horton on a beautiful feed from David Krejci. The city of Boston was in an uproar. Fans coming together as one chanting "WE WANT THE CUP, WE WANT THE CUP" at North Station last night. The Bruins have finally rewarded its fans after a long wait, but do not sleep on this team. This team has fought all year and just because Vegas has the team as a 2-1 underdog to the lethal Vancouver Canucks, does not mean the B's can't hoist the trophy. Timmy Thomas is unbeaten versus the Canucks and defeated them 3-1 earlier in February. The Hub has Stanley Cup fever and it finally feels good to be watching hockey heading into June. The Boston Bruins are back. Another person who deserves all the credit in the world is Big Z. He has been a monster on the defensive end shutting down the elite scorers in the NHL. Big Z has been playing almost 25 minutes a game. The Bruins do not get where they are this year without the big guy.

The Red Sox are finally a top the standings. Carl Crawford is earning his pay check and everything is starting to click for the Nation. The Sox have scored 34 runs in their past three games while getting quality pitching from spot starters Tim Wakefield and Acedo Aceves. The Sox are 27-12 since their brutal 2-10 start. Red Sox Nation can finally breathe again because the team is on a roll. They are 12-2 in their last 14 games and have won four straight. The Yankees are getting older while the Red Sox are getting younger. The Yanks will be there until the end, but the Sox should hold the spot a top the AL East until the end of the season.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

There was much discussion throughout these playoffs, when and if Tyler Seguin will get any ice time and spark this Bruins team. When Patrice Bergeron was concussed, the 19 year-old got his chance. Entering his first NHL playoff game versus the Lightning, Seguin was watching games from the press box not too long ago. Seguin made an immediate impact scoring the Bruins first goal to cut the lead to 3-1 and assisted on the other. Claude Julien must now realize that this kid needs to stay on the ice. His quickness, moves, and hockey IQ are that of a very special player. After all, there was a reason the Bruins drafted him number two overall.
In his second game versus Tampa Bay in the Eastern Conference Finals with the Bruins down 2-1, he sparked a second period surge that led the Bruins to five goals on nine shots. Seguin accounted for two goals and two assists. The Garden started the chant "Seguinnnnnnnn, Seguinnnnnnn, Seguinnnnn" but in a good way. The kid proved that he is an elite player and difference maker. Now, we hope Claude can see the same thing.
With Patrice Bergeron due back by Game three on Thursday, it is a good problem to have trying to see where Seguin and Bergeron will fit into the line making. The odd man out looks like Shawn Thornton, but who knows what Mr. Julien will do. He loves his fourth line and the toughness Thornton brings to the team, but Bergeron is the key to this team and now Seguin may be too if he stays on the ice. If you looked at the clock last night with 1:30 remaining, Tyler Seguin was on the ice. Like I said during the Philly series and Montreal Series, he was eating popcorn in the press box with the Bruins camp. This is a serious step in the right direction for once.